I’m not sure I’d call what Hebrew has
strange, but it definitely has pronunciations that aren’t as common in speech as they are in songs.
First, it has register-based pronunciation differences (mostly in proclitic conjunctions/prepositions) which are used to effect in some styles of singing but not others. As an example: the sequence meaning “and when (I did…)” is pronounced
vekshe- [vekʃe-] in ordinary speech, and in songs sung by young and hipstery people whose songs are trying to capture a certain “street-style”, or to sound colloquial and unpretentious. On the other hand, the same sequence is pronounced
ukhshe- [uχʃe-] in formal speech-registers, and in songs based in more traditional musical styles, or in songs intended to sound poetic, grandiose, dramatic, or formal.
Then there are also pronunciation differences not based on register, but on heritage and/or musical tradition, for example: laxing/centralization of vowels, uvular |r| [ʁ], elision of glottals /h ʔ/, and a very fortitioned pronunciation of fricatives, which characterizes Western-style, young, non-traditional music and speech. This stands in opposition to the alveolarization of |r| [ɾ], the pharyngeal pronunciation of |ħ ʕ| as [ħ ʕ] (instead of the usual, ‘standard’ [χ ʔ]), along with unlaxed vowels and unfortitioned fricatives, characteristic of modern Eastern-style music. In addition, traditional songs are usually sung in the liturgical pronunciation of the songs’ region of origin, which (especially the Yemenite) can be quite unintelligible to untrained ears.
Below are some examples, graded according to perceived register, more or less.
1:
Gila Beshari – Ahavat Hadasa (The Love of Hadassah)
‘traditional Eastern’ style: poetic language, high-register proclitics, Yemenite liturgical pronunciation
- sound changes of Yemeni Arabic transferred wholesale onto Hebrew
- nobody speaks like this, but it’s still used for traditional Yemenite songs and liturgy
|ʔahăvat haˈdassā ʕal ləvāvī niqʃərā| / |waʔănī bətōχ gōlā pəʕāmaj tsōləlīm|
[ʔahavaθ haˈðasso ʕal lavovi nigʃaro] / [waʔani baθøχ dʒølo paʕomaj sˤølalim]
“The love of Hadassah is tied upon my heart / But my steps plunge me into exile”
spoken: [ahavat haˈdasa al levavi nikʃeʁa] / [vaani betoχ gola peamaj tsolelim]
2:
Avraham Fried – Ashreynu (We are Fortunate)
‘traditional Western’ style: poetic language, high-register proclitics, Lithuanian liturgical pronunciation
- sound changes of Lithuanian Yiddish transferred wholesale onto Hebrew
- nobody speaks like this, but it’s still used for traditional Ashkenazi songs and liturgy
|ʔaʃˈrēnū ma tōv ħelˈqēnū| / |ūma nāʕīm gōrāˈlēnū ūma jāfā jərūʃāˈtēnū|
[aʃˈʁeinu ma toiv χelˈkeinu] / [uma ˈnojim goiroˈleinu uma ˈjofo jəʁuʃoˈseinu]
“We are fortunate, how good is our portion, / How pleasant is our fortune and how beautiful our heritage”
spoken: [aʃˈʁenu ma tov χelˈkenu] / [uma naim goraˈlenu uma jafa jeʁuʃaˈtenu]
3:
Shoshana Damari – Tsarikh Letsaltsel Pa’amayim (Ring the Bell Twice)
‘older Eastern’ style: formal language, high-register proclitics, former standard pronunciation
- retention of glottals and pharyngeals; alveolar |r|; no reductions; |ē| is [ej] in open syllables; etc.
- now only used in speech by some elderly people (or else as an affectation expressing Eastern heritage), but it’s still common in Eastern-style songs
|tsārīχ lətsaltsēl paʕaˈmajim lāvō wəlōmar ˈʕerev tōv| / |niχˈnastī ʔeˈlajiχ bēnˈtajim kēvān ʃeʕāˈvartī bārəħōv|
[tsariχ letsaltsel paʕaˈmajim lavo velomar ˈʕerev tov] / [niχˈnasti ʔeˈlajiχ benˈtajim kejvan ʃeʕaˈvarti barħov]
“Ring the bell twice, come in and say ‘Good evening / I’m just dropping in because I was passing by’”
4:
Sarit Hadad – Ani Me’akhelet Lekha (I Wish that You)
‘modern Eastern’ style: standard language, high-register proclitics, standard/formal pronunciation
- retention of [h] and of some [ʔ]; alveolar |r|; tense vowels; no pharyngeals; no reductions; etc.
- quite a lot of people speak like this, with or without high-register forms, in unmarked or formal settings, but not as many as the below
|ʃellō tēdaʕ kol ˈtsaʕar uχəʔēv kəmō ʃehiʃˈʔartā lī ballēv| / |ʃellō tēdaʕ ˈħōser ʔĕmūnā kəmō ʃehiʃˈʔartā lī bannəʃāmā|
[ʃelo teda kol ˈtsaaɾ uχeev kemo ʃehiʃˈʔaɾta li balev] / [ʃelo teda ˈχoseɾ emuna kemo ʃehiʃˈʔaɾta li banʃama]
“May you never know any such sorrow and pain / as you have left in my heart”
5:
Yuval Dayan – Ad SheTakhazor (Until You Return)
‘modern Western’ style: standard language, high-register proclitics, standard/colloquial pronunciation
- elision of most glottals; uvular |r|; laxed vowels; no pharyngeals; no reductions; etc.
- most people speak like this, with or without high-register forms, in both unmarked and formal settings
|ʃam bēn hehārīm ūvēn kfārīm ʔattā ʕōvēr| / |sādōt ptūħīm mlēʔīm bətūt wəˈrēaħ ˈgeʃem mitgabbēr|
[ʃam ben eaʁim uven kfaʁim ata oveʁ] / [sadot ptuχim mleim betut veˈʁeaχ ˈgeʃem midgabeʁ]
“There, between the hills and the villages, you pass through / open fields filled with strawberries and the growing scent of rain”
6:
Gal Malka ft. Statik – Ba Lah Lirkod (She Wanna Dance)
‘street’-style: slangy language, low-register proclitics, colloquial pronunciation
- elision of all glottals; uvular |r|; laxed vowels; no pharyngeals; all sorts of reductions; etc.
- most people younger than about 50 speak like this in informal settings
|ʔēχ hī ʔōˈhevet ʔet hāħōf məsōˈvevet rāʃīm blī sōf| / |wəhaqˈqetsev ʕōle ʔaz hakkol miʃtanne kʃehī ləʔat matħīlā laħăsōf|
[eχ i oˈevet taχof msoˈvevet ʁaʃim bli sof] / [veaˈketsev ole az akol miʃtane kʃei leat matχila laχsof]
“She loves the beach so much, she keeps turning heads / And the rhythm speeds up then everything changes when she starts slowly undressing”
*warning: awful song*
I don’t know if that’s the kind of thing you meant, or if the differences are clearly audible to non-speakers, but I think it’s interesting.